The latest on California politics and government

September 24, 2012

Those special license plates for retired lawmakers might spark some nice treatment from a restaurant valet. But they didn't come in too handy last week when former lobbyist and Assemblyman Richard Robinson crashed his BMW in Sacramento and was later booked on suspicion of drunk driving.

Robinson, a Democrat who represented the Garden Grove area in the Assembly from 1975 to 1986 and then worked as a lobbyist for many years, was driving an SUV with special plates indicating he's the retired District 72 assemblyman when he crashed Wednesday night. Fox 40 TV news caught the aftermath on tape.

Robinson was heading north on Bradshaw Road around 8 p.m. when he made an illegal left turn near the Highway 50 onramp, said CHP Officer Jasper Begay. Robinson was hit by a pickup truck before crashing into a traffic light, Begay said. There were no injuries. The responding CHP officer suspected Robinson was drunk and arrested him on suspicion of a misdemeanor DUI.

Robinson spent Wednesday night in jail and was released with a citation in the morning, said Sacramento Sheriff's Deputy Jason Ramos. He is scheduled to be arraigned on Oct. 30, Ramos said.

Robinson has a clean driving record, according to the DMV.

But he's no stranger to the law. As a registered lobbyist until November 2010, Robinson represented the California Correctional Peace Officers Association and the California Statewide Law Enforcement Association.